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Meet NAMM's new chairman Dennis Houlihan: the President of Roland Corp. US becomes first supplier to hold NAMM's top elected spot, but don't expect a major shake-up. "I'm just going to tap the accelerator a little," he says.

Article Excerpt
AS A 15-YEAR-OLD ORGAN prodigy, Dennis Houlihan took an after-school job as a product demonstrator at Don Smith Music & Gospel Supply in his hometown of Fresno, California. The pay was $1.50 an hour, but he concedes today that he liked the work so much, "I would have probably worked for free." On a particularly busy Saturday, after demonstrating an organ to an interested couple, he looked up to see all the salespeople fully engaged with customers. As the couple grew impatient and began edging towards the door, Dennis tentatively blurted out "Would you like to buy it?" Much to his surprise, they answered in the affirmative and he soon found himself writing up his first sales contract. After stints in both retail and wholesale, Houlihan is now president of Roland Corp. U.S. The stakes and dollar amounts are a lot higher in his current post, but in Dennis's eyes, the fundamentals of his job haven't changed that much over the past 40 years--he still sees his role as helping people gain satisfaction through music. This month Dennis applies his broad-based industry experience to a new challenge, having been elected chairman of NAMM. He becomes the first supplier member to head the association in its 102-year history.

In 1903, when a group of piano dealers got together on the Atlantic City boardwalk to form what became the National Association of Music Merchants, they envisioned banding together to better stand up to the bullying tactics of their suppliers. And, for much of NAMM's history, it was, as the name implied, an organization focused exclusively on the needs and concerns of retailers. In a momentous shift a decade ago, NAMM rebadged itself as "The International Music Products Association" and pledged...

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